Compares your child’s height and weight to other children of the same age and sex.

Can talk to you if you are worried that your child is shorter than most or all of the children around them. If your child has short stature, this does not necessarily mean that there is something wrong.

Causes

There are many reasons that your child has short stature.

Most of the time there is no medical cause for short stature. Here is what may be going on.

Your child may be small for their age but they are growing okay. They will probably start puberty later than their friends. Your child will most likely continue to grow after most of their peers have stopped growing. Your child will most likely be as tall as the parents. Health providers call this Constitutional growth delay.

If one or both parents is short, your child will mostly likely also be short. Expect that your child will be as tall as one of the parents.

Sometimes short stature may be a symptom of a medical conditions such as:

For help in finding a doctor or health service that suits your needs, call the UPMC Referral Service at 412-647-UPMC (8762) or 1-800-533-UPMC (8762). Select option 1.

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